One problem I have with this question is that none of us go about a complete and clear understanding of any situation, and so the balance we seek is not between honesty and compassion, but between our imperfect understanding of each at any given time. Also, how often is one faced with a dillema between pure honesty or pure compassion? Most moral decisions require a response that includes both, with the weighting of each a function of the degree of imperfection in our own understanding.